Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Sign In Register
Examples: Monday, today, last week, Mar 26, 3/26/04
Welcome home! Please contact lincoln@icrontic.com if you have any difficulty logging in or using the site. New registrations must be manually approved which may take several days. Can't log in? Try clearing your browser's cookies.

I just don't understand

gwatson117gwatson117
edited January 2010 in Buddhism Basics
:confused:I am currently "Christian" but I am feeling more and more disconnected from this faith more and more. I am just confused as to what Buddhism is to me and everyone who wants to practice or is practices. I understand little as to what meditation is and what the journey of my mind is, but can someone give me a brief description as to what I need to set my goals to?

Comments

  • FoibleFullFoibleFull Canada Veteran
    edited December 2009
    Buddhism is a way to change your frame of reference to yourself and everything else you experience. This change leads to freedom from suffering.

    This release is the goal of Buddhism, but the practice of Buddhism itself is a process ... a moment-to-moment way of living.

    Buddhism is not a religion. It neither asks nor answers questions about God. There is a sort of salvation ... nirvana ... but it relies not on faith, not on the intercession of any sort of higher power (whether god or guru), but solely on your own efforts.

    Buddhism does not ask you to take it on faith. It asks you to follow the practice and then to see for yourself if it works. Meditation is one key element of the practice, but I know Buddhists who have progressed down the path without meditation.
  • sukhitasukhita
    edited December 2009
    gwatson117 wrote: »
    ..... I am just confused as to what Buddhism is to me and everyone who wants to practice or is practices. I understand little as to what meditation is and what the journey of my mind is, but can someone give me a brief description as to what I need to set my goals to?

    Hi and welcome to the Forum,

    I recommend you start by reading a book - go to the thread "Buddhism for Beginners\Recommended Reading." There are some fine books listed there.

    Happy New Year, :)
    Sukhita
  • federicafederica Seeker of the clear blue sky... Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt Moderator
    edited December 2009
    to
    gwatson117 wrote: »
    :confused:I am currently "Christian" but I am feeling more and more disconnected from this faith more and more. I am just confused as to what Buddhism is to me and everyone who wants to practice or is practices. I understand little as to what meditation is and what the journey of my mind is, but can someone give me a brief description as to what I need to set my goals to?

    The Buddha's primary discourse, at Deer Park, and the foundation to every teaching, was the recognition and understanding of Suffering, and the cessation of suffering.
    A study of the Four Noble Truths, and the subsequent Eightfold Path (the 4th Noble Truth) will, with study, contemplation and practice, help you see your way through your confusion.

    Bear in mind that most people here are primarily from the west.
    That is to say, we were not born either into a Buddhist family, nor a Buddhist community.
    We all had, to one degree or another, exposure to and influence from a Theistic
    religion.
    so, believe it or not, we do understand where you're coming from.

    Foiblefull's post is absolutely spot on.
    Buddhism does absolutely nothing for you.
    The hard part is your task.
    But the more you look, see, learn, understand, question, ponder, enquire, digest and take in, the simpler things will become.
    Please don't hesitate to come in and ask whatever you feel you need to ask.
    Whilst no two answers will be the same, we'll all do whatever we can to clarify....
    The only dumb question, is the one you don't ask.....
  • fivebellsfivebells Veteran
    edited December 2009
    The short answer is, pay kind attention to experience, and this leads to peace. You can find a more in-depth description of the goals and methods here, and Mindfulness In Plain English is a good, accessible, practical overview.
  • questionfulquestionful
    edited December 2009
    i started with this book:

    http://www.bdkamerica.org/default.aspx?MPID=53

    I found it at a library, but since then, i acquired 3 copies for freee! just ask them!

    it explains buddhism simply enough for a complete novice (like me) to understand, but still discusses many different topics.

    I know you'll like it, take a read! It's free.
  • gwatson117gwatson117
    edited December 2009
    The next biggest question I have is what is meditation and what am I supposed to "pray" while doing this? Because like I said I understand it very very little, but not that much. Please explain
  • fivebellsfivebells Veteran
    edited December 2009
    There is no prayer. Mindfulness In Plain English outlines what meditation is, in some detail. Depending on what kind of answer you're looking for, it may be a good place to start.
  • not1not2not1not2 Veteran
    edited January 2010
    gwatson117 wrote: »
    The next biggest question I have is what is meditation and what am I supposed to "pray" while doing this? Because like I said I understand it very very little, but not that much. Please explain

    There are many methods of meditation and they all contribute the process of waking up. Most sitting groups will practice some form of concentration meditation and/or insight meditation. Concentration practices build one's ability to remain focus on the object at hand, and Insight practices build one's ability to raise their level of awareness of the Four Noble Truths (which Fede mentioned). There are practices which cultivate certain frames of mind such as compassion, even-mindedness, etc.

    Also, different schools of Buddhism appeal to different kinds of practitioners and seekers. My advice would be to investigate them all to some extent and in the process you will find yourself gravitating towards specific approaches, practices and subject matters. There are many great web resources out there. Buddhanet.net is a pretty well organized site that should be able to give you a start on all of this stuff.

    If you have more specific questions, feel free to ask.

    _/\_

    P.S.-as mentioned earlier, many of us come from theistic backgrounds and have likely grappled with some of the issues you are dealing with.
  • not1not2not1not2 Veteran
    edited January 2010
    Also, when first encountering Buddhism, I found audio resources to be a wonderful resource of introducing themes and terms in an easy to digest manner. Here are a couple of links:

    http://www.buddhanet.net/audio.htm

    http://lamrim.com/index2.html
  • pegembarapegembara Veteran
    edited January 2010
    gwatson117 wrote: »
    The next biggest question I have is what is meditation and what am I supposed to "pray" while doing this? Because like I said I understand it very very little, but not that much. Please explain

    The purpose of Buddhist meditation is to liberate ourselves from the delusion and thereby put an end to both ignorance and craving. The meditation produces results - results which are observable in the character and the whole attitude to life.


    For more on Buddhist meditation go to

    http://www.vipassana.com/meditation/buddhist_meditation.php
  • Hank777Hank777
    edited January 2010
    Welcome gwatson117,
    :confused:I am currently "Christian" but I am feeling more and more disconnected from this faith more and more. I am just confused as to what Buddhism is to me and everyone who wants to practice or is practices.
    Although I am not sure as to why you feel more and more disconnected from Christianity, I can say this to you it is very well possible to combine the both. I just starting doing it, and has even created an increased interest in several areas, both Christianity and of course Buddhism.

    If this is something u are also dealing with, I got some great help and suggestions from my fellow forum-members in this thread.

    http://newbuddhist.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4235

    I wish you all the best & welcome 2 the forum! :)
Sign In or Register to comment.